Integrated pest management resources for Michigan Michigan State University home IPM Michigan home
Weed Identification in Nurseries and Landscapes

Search

Christmas trees
Field crops
Fruit
Home and yard
Nursery and landscape
Turfgrass
Vegetable


Diagnostic Services
Soil/Plant Nutrient Lab
Enviro-weather
Regional IPM Center
Pesticide safety
Organic: New Ag Network
Invasive species
Sustainable ag & food systems


MSU ANR departments
MSU Extension

Site index
Contacts/permissions

Horsenettle - Solanum carolinense L.
 
Horsenettle leaf
Horsenettle leaf.
Life cycle: Spreading to erect, patch-forming perennial.

Leaves: Alternate, egg-shaped, shallowly to deeply lobed, 2 to 5 inches long with sharp, prominent prickles on the leaf veins, midveins and petioles. Star-shaped hairs are present on both leaf surfaces.

Stems: Spreading to erect, herbaceous stems with multiple branching, up to 3 feet in height. Stems have sharp, prominent prickles and star-shaped hairs.

Flowers and fruit: Flowers are white to pale purple, star-shaped with five petals fused at the base and found in clusters on prickly flowering stalks. Flower centers consist of bright yellow, cone-shaped anthers. Berries are yellow at maturity, globe-shaped, wrinkled and approximately 0.5 inch across, and contain up to 170 seeds.

Reproduction: Seeds and deeply penetrating vertical to horizontal creeping roots.

Toxicity: All plant parts are toxic to animals.
 
Horsenettle fruit Horsenettle plant Horsenettle spines
Horsenettle mature berries. Horsenettle plant. Sharp, prominent prickles of horsenettle.
The MSU IPM Program maintains this site as an access point to pest management information at MSU. The IPM Program is administered within the Department of Entomology, fueled by research from the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, delivered to citizens through MSU Extension, and proud to be a part of Project GREEEN.
Email
the web developer.
Updated: 10/16/07